There were too many upsets last night. That is often a fun thing for baseball and proves the old point about any given night. But it is not good for a game picker. I did get one upset pick correct with the Mariners over the Orioles. But the Astros creamed the Yankees. Ubaldo Jimenez pitched a good game, which is an upset in itself. The Mets blew a save and then lost in extra innings to the Marlins, ruining another good Matt Harvey outing. The Braves came back on Stephen Strasburg and won the game despite Julio Teheran giving up eleven base runners in five and a third innings. It did not help the Nationals' cause to have two runners picked off in the game.
So it was not a good night. The week is still largely in the plus side thanks to Sunday and at least the Game of the Day came in correctly. But it was definitely a night to bounce back from. Here are Tuesday's picks:
- The Yankees over the Astros: Okay, so last night was a blip, right? The Yankees should be the better team here, especially at home, right? So let's try this again. Hiroki Kuroda over the 0-5 Philip Humber. Now watch Humber throw a perfect game or something.
- The Phillies over the Indians: Zach McAllister confuses me. I always thought he was better than this. But perhaps he is not. Roy Halladay confuses me too. Is he still a stud? Or is he over the hill? These are the burning questions as the pick unfolds. The Phillies are in Cleveland in unfamiliar territory, but they do get an extra bat in their lineup. Lord knows, they need all the bats they can get.
- The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: Jon Lester had an 0.79 walks per nine going into his last start and promptly walked seven batters. Baseball is so easy to predict. Sheesh. Brandon Morrow looked so flat against the Yankees last week that it sure seems stupid to pick him in this one.
- The Tigers over the Twins: Joe Mauer has gone zero for his last five games. How weird is that? The Tigers just keep rolling with good offense and good pitching. Justin Verlander should not lose this game. And Vance Worley should not stop this Tigers' attack. Should nots are scary things.
- The Marlins over the Mets: Don't look now, but the Marlins have won two straight. Can they make it three? I think they can because Jeremy Hefner is not very good for the Mets. The only problem making this pick is that Kevin Slowey has shown nothing thus far on the mound.
- The Braves over the Nationals: Tough game to pick here. Gio Gonzalez seemed to find himself in his last outing to regain his fine form. But his lefty-ness plays right into the Braves' lineup stacked with all those good hitting right-handed bats. Tim Hudson is still one of the best pitchers of his generation.
- The Cubs over the Padres: This pick could have gone either way and I am still not sure I have it right. Edinson Volquez actually pitched well last time without a ton of walks. Hmm.. But the Cubbies are at home and another erstwhile pitcher in Edwin Jackson is due for a win.
- The Brewers over the Pirates: I have gotten in trouble picking against Marco Estrada on several occasions. I do not feel like getting burned again. The only problem is that if James McDonald is on, he is tough.
- The Royals over the Bay Rays: James Shields gets to pitch against his old team and show young, Mr. Alex Cobb how it is done. Shields has to come up big here and he should have all the incentive in the world.
- The Cardinals over the Reds: This fun-filled series resumes with Jaime Garcia versus Bronson Arroyo. The Cardinal offense has been inconsistent. Sometimes they look overpowering and just as many times, they roll over. I am not confident in either pitcher. And usually when that happens, I go with the home team.
- The Giants over the Diamondbacks: Now that the Giants have overcome their Ian Kennedy disease, they have to feel good about themselves. Trevor Cahill does not impress me in the least. Madison Bumgarner impresses the heck out of me.
- The Angels over the Athletics: How long do the A's stick with the struggling Jarrod Parker? Parker was much better at home last year, but this year, it does not seem to matter. Garrett Richards was banged around last time and is better than that.
- The Mariners over the Orioles: Why the heck not. Brandon Maurer has been very good his last two starts despite me ragging on him. If he has another good start, even the Mariners should get to Jason Hammel, who has a bit of a homecoming here.
- The Dodgers over the Rockies: This same pick last night made me look stupid. And I remain unconvinced about Hyun-Jin Ryu. I am also concerned about this pick because Jorge de la Rosa has been good this season. But the pick is still the Dodgers.
And the Game of the Day!
- The Rangers over the White Sox: Yu Darvish has looked wicked good so far this season (to use a Maine expression). Jose Quintana has looked good too. I still think Darvish will be too much for the White Sox and Quintana will cough up a couple of runs at least in Texas.
Yesterday: 5-7
Week: 17-11
Month: 220-159
Games of the Day: 21-8
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